I am playing S.T.A.L.K.E.R: Call of Pripyat and I just reached the third and final section of the game. Overall I think this is the best S.T.A.L.K.E.R. up to date. Unlike Clear Sky the three areas are new. Unlike previous games, this is the most well written one in terms of story and quests and most balanced. This is also the least buggy one. The RPG stuff have been given more attention with plenty of quests and plenty of choices to make on how to deal with them.

The awesome atmosphere is still there. I nearly had a heartattack when I was suddenly attacked by a dog in the middle of a large, dark complex after not meeting a single enemy for for 20 minutes or so.

-- Mankind must put an end to war or war will put an end to mankind. - John F Kennedy
An eye for an eye, and soon the whole world is blind. - Mahatma Gandhi
The world is my country. To do good is my religion. My mind is my own church. This simple creed is all we need to enjoy peace on earth. - Thomas Paine

8-10 was the quoted playtime for Avencast, here I'm 23 hours in and just at about the end game! So much for a "weekend game", lol. It's the completist in me, I'm of course turning over every nook and cranny and selling all loot, etc

Pretty fun tho, if not a bit too monotonous toward the end as arpgs typically are. But it's easy to die still if you let too many things slip thru the cracks and land a hit or two, so it tends to be fun in spite of this. For the most part. Things take a ridiculous amount of punishment still despite me dumping everything into damage stats, i cant wait to see what the end boss soaks up!

I'll have to find out later, for now we're heading out to dinner and "Video Games Live"!

In any case, ive bought Deathspank and am having fun w/ it. I like the art style and retro surf music soundtrack, really cool. Usually I loathe the "making fun of rpg" humor in games, it's usually awful un-funny. I have to admit, Deathspank is not only tolerable, but actually kinda funny as well.

I'm playing F.E.A.R. after getting it plus the 2 expansions for $10 at DirectDrive sale. Hadn't gotten around to it before, but the price pushed me into it.

I'm liking the enemy AI being smart enough to use cover, but they are easy to trick into coming after you, and then you can surprise them by popping out from around a corner. I always play FPS shooters by challenging myself to not take any damage. This is on hard difficulty.

But geesh, the environment sure is repetitive… The once vaunted graphics now look a bit bland… Still fun though!

Originally Posted by Thrasher
I'm playing F.E.A.R. after getting it plus the 2 expansions for $10 at DirectDrive sale. Hadn't gotten around to it before, but the price pushed me into it.

The expansions are kinda odd. Neither are considered canon, meaning that the real sequel (F.E.A.R 2) completely ignore the events of both expansions.

If you do play them, the first expansion is the better one in my opinion, while Perseus Mandate was really poor. If you do play F.E.A.R 2, be sure to get your hands on the DLC for that one. It bridges some gaps.

-- Mankind must put an end to war or war will put an end to mankind. - John F Kennedy
An eye for an eye, and soon the whole world is blind. - Mahatma Gandhi
The world is my country. To do good is my religion. My mind is my own church. This simple creed is all we need to enjoy peace on earth. - Thomas Paine

I just finished it! Very solid game. I only experienced one bug - a swapped weapon fell through the floor (well that and weapons and enemy bodies getting stuck in walls). After the first level, the environments and enemies became less repetitive, so it was definitely enjoyable, and disturbing…

I just had one question - who or what were all the ghosts that attacked during the dream sequences, and in the final level?

One month left of the summer and I am thinking about trying to get through as many of the recent RPG's as possible. I am seriously lagging behind in the RPG department, probably because of my studies. Witcher is now 3 years old and I still haven't started on it.

In my pile of "to play" RPG's I have Alpha Protocol, Borderlands, Divinity II:Ego Draconis, Dragon Age: origins, Drakensang: The Dark Eye, Final Fantasy XIII, Risen and The Witcher: Enhanced Edition. I doubt I get through all of those in 1 month though, even if I dedicate 16 hours per day on it.

-- Mankind must put an end to war or war will put an end to mankind. - John F Kennedy
An eye for an eye, and soon the whole world is blind. - Mahatma Gandhi
The world is my country. To do good is my religion. My mind is my own church. This simple creed is all we need to enjoy peace on earth. - Thomas Paine

Originally Posted by JemyM
In my pile of "to play" RPG's I have Alpha Protocol, Borderlands, Divinity II:Ego Draconis, Dragon Age: origins, Drakensang: The Dark Eye, Final Fantasy XIII, Risen and The Witcher: Enhanced Edition. I doubt I get through all of those in 1 month though, even if I dedicate 16 hours per day on it.

I've played all of those titles, except Divinity II and Drakensang. My recommendation would be The Witcher, Risen, and Dragon Age as a priority. Although you might want to delay playing Dragon Age if your time is limited.

Definitely forget about Borderlands, it's not worth your time as an "RPG".

Originally Posted by JDR13
Definitely forget about Borderlands, it's not worth your time as an "RPG".

I agree. Borderland is a lot better than I was expecting but as an action shooter, not an RPG.

-- "Chess in particular had always annoyed him. It was the dumb way the pawns went off and slaughtered their fellow pawns while the kings lounged about doing nothing that always got to him; if only the pawns united, maybe talked the rooks around, the whole board could've been a republic in a dozen moves."- Commander Vimes in Thud! by Terry Pratchett

Originally Posted by JDR13
I've played all of those titles, except Divinity II and Drakensang. My recommendation would be The Witcher, Risen, and Dragon Age as a priority.

Interestingly, my Witcher disc had a CRC error… I guess I have to call support.

Although you might want to delay playing Dragon Age if your time is limited.

Hmmm. It's that long? What about the other two?

Definitely forget about Borderlands, it's not worth your time as an "RPG".

How is it as a shooter then? I liked S.T.A.L.K.E.R.

-- Mankind must put an end to war or war will put an end to mankind. - John F Kennedy
An eye for an eye, and soon the whole world is blind. - Mahatma Gandhi
The world is my country. To do good is my religion. My mind is my own church. This simple creed is all we need to enjoy peace on earth. - Thomas Paine

Originally Posted by JemyM
One month left of the summer and I am thinking about trying to get through as many of the recent RPG's as possible. I am seriously lagging behind in the RPG department, probably because of my studies. Witcher is now 3 years old and I still haven't started on it.

In my pile of "to play" RPG's I have Alpha Protocol, Borderlands, Divinity II:Ego Draconis, Dragon Age: origins, Drakensang: The Dark Eye, Final Fantasy XIII, Risen and The Witcher: Enhanced Edition. I doubt I get through all of those in 1 month though, even if I dedicate 16 hours per day on it.

Hah! There's still 8 hours left. And besides you can sleep for 12 hours in a minute or so. At least that's how it works in FO3 which I'm playing at the moment.

But seriously, I'm impressed by the dedication you and others here put into your gaming. And the speed with which you complete games. I spend ages with a single game, partly because I spend a lot of time just wandering about. (I suppose it'll take me 3 motnths to finish FO3). There is a lesson to be learned here: I shouldn't buy that many new games, unless I plan to retire from work. Which I can't. *sighs* I think I hate the Real life server.

pibbur

Originally Posted by pibbur
And the speed with which you complete games.

I have an interest in game architecture in relationship with human psychology. This allow me to get something out from bad games as well, and I usually manage to finish what I begin. Been considering if I shouldn't try to write reviews for a magazie since my Swedish writing is often complimented to be above average. I do not put down a lot of effort on the minireviews I write here, I could probably give it some more if I went pro.

-- Mankind must put an end to war or war will put an end to mankind. - John F Kennedy
An eye for an eye, and soon the whole world is blind. - Mahatma Gandhi
The world is my country. To do good is my religion. My mind is my own church. This simple creed is all we need to enjoy peace on earth. - Thomas Paine

Originally Posted by JemyM
…
Been considering if I shouldn't try to write reviews for a magazie since my Swedish writing is often complimented to be above average. I do not put down a lot of effort on the minireviews I write here, I could probably give it some more if I went pro.

I decided to do Dragon Age. I went out and bought the expansion and all DLC's and now I am doing the tutorial for my mage, who happen to look a lot like Imoen.

-- Mankind must put an end to war or war will put an end to mankind. - John F Kennedy
An eye for an eye, and soon the whole world is blind. - Mahatma Gandhi
The world is my country. To do good is my religion. My mind is my own church. This simple creed is all we need to enjoy peace on earth. - Thomas Paine